The 39-year-old died suddenly and violently after a ritual involving Amazonian frog poison in Mullumbimby in 2019 Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast Vulnerable people are placing their trust in self-proclaimed healers who lack basic first aid training, a coroner has warned in handing down her findings into the death of a woman after a two-person ritual involving the poisonous mucus of an Amazonian frog. Natasha Lechner died suddenly and violently after a “kambo” ceremony in a Mullumbimby sharehouse ..read more

Coroner pauses inquest into death of Jarrad Antonovich, who died after drinking ayahuasca and partaking in a ‘kambo’ ritual Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast The inquest for a man who died after taking a cocktail of alternative “medicines” at a spiritual retreat in northern New South Wales has been adjourned after new witnesses emerged. Jarrad Antonovich died after drinking ayahuasca and partaking in a “kambo” ritual at a six-day spiritual festival held on a property near Kyogle in October 2021. Si ..read more

Jarrad Antonovich died after drinking plant-based psychedelic and having frog toxin extract ‘kambo’ dabbed into burns Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast The ceremonial leader of a spiritual retreat in northern New South Wales at which a man died after drinking ayahuasca may have told witnesses not to talk about the fatal ceremony, a coroner has heard. The second sitting of the inquest into the death of Jarrad Antonovich – who died after drinking the plant-based psychedelic and having the frog toxin extract “kambo” dabbed into burns in his skin – held it ..read more

Psychotherapist tells inquest she was told ‘no hospital’ after expressing concern for Jarrad Antonovich, who died later that night Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcast A man who died after taking a cocktail of alternative “medicines” at a spiritual retreat in northern New South Wales was not taken to hospital because the “energy workers” charged with his care failed to detect the fatal tear in his esophagus, a coroner has heard. The inquest into the death of Jarrad Antonovich resumed in Byron Bay on T ..read more

Entrepreneurs on TV show’s panel all offered to invest in business selling ear seeds as part of treatment for chronic illness Doctors and campaigners have complained to the BBC and MPs about “unfounded” claims made on the TV show Dragons’ Den that Chinese medicine had helped a woman recover from myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), a disease with no known cure. An open letter to the chairs of two select committees was organised by Action for ME after an episode of the programme, in which entrepreneurs pitch their businesses to a panel of investors, aired on 18 January containing “misleading and pot ..read more

We are raiding the Guardian Long Read archives to bring you some classic pieces from years past, with new introductions from the authors. This week, from 2019: Demand for ‘healing’ crystals is soaring – but many are mined in deadly conditions in one of the world’s poorest countries. And there is little evidence that this billion-dollar industry is cleaning up its act. By Tess McClure ..read more

Campaigners say monarch’s decision to put Dr Michael Dixon in charge of royal medical household is ‘inappropriate’ King Charles’s appointment of a pro-homeopathy head of the royal medical household has been described as worrying and inappropriate by academics and campaigners. Dr Michael Dixon, who has championed faith healing and herbalism in his work as a GP, has quietly held the senior position for the last year, the Sunday Times reported ..read more

At the gathering in Sydney, wellness sits alongside the spiritual, distrust of the establishment alongside commerce In front of a large stage at Sydney’s International Convention Centre, a woman is singing with her eyes closed. In a long satin mauve gown and a headdress with artificial flowers and twigs standing on end, she walks slowly down the aisle, bisecting rows of black plastic chairs. Her song is wordless, operatic and, in no small way, quite beautiful. As she nears the end of the aisle, the singer turns right at one of the rows, stands behind a woman, raises her arm and floats a hand ..read more

Kellie Poole’s heart stopped after entering 10.7C water in Derbyshire therapy session, inquest rules A senior coroner has expressed concern about the lack of regulation of cold water immersion therapy, after ruling that a woman’s death was as a result of an undiagnosed heart condition triggered by the water. Kellie Poole, 39, died when her heart stopped shortly after entering the River Goyt in Whaley Bridge, Derbyshire, on 25 April 2022 ..read more

Some of Australia’s largest companies are getting into the business of healthcare, claiming they are making medical appointments and prescriptions easier to access. But not everyone is convinced. Health reporter Natasha May tells Laura Murphy-Oates why some experts are concerned about the rise of ‘McMedicine’ You can subscribe for free to Guardian Australia’s daily news podcast Full Story on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts Read more ..read more